Legume plants host nitrogen-fixing endosymbiotic Rhizobium bacteria in root nodules. In Medicago truncatula, the bacteria undergo an irreversible (terminal) differentiation mediated by hitherto unidentified plant factors. We demonstrated that these factors are nodule-specific cysteine-rich (NCR) peptides that are targeted to the bacteria and enter the bacterial membrane and cytosol. Obstruction of NCR transport in the dnf1-1 signal peptidase mutant correlated with the absence of terminal bacterial differentiation. On the contrary, ectopic expression of NCRs in legumes devoid of NCRs or challenge of cultured rhizobia with peptides provoked symptoms of terminal differentiation. Because NCRs resemble antimicrobial peptides, our findings reveal a previously unknown innovation of the host plant, which adopts effectors of the innate immune system for symbiosis to manipulate the cell fate of endosymbiotic bacteria.

FM-dyes are widely used to study endocytosis, vesicle trafficking and organelle organization in living eukaryotic cells. The increasing use of FM-dyes in plant cells has provoked much debate with regard to their suitability as endocytosis markers, which organelles they stain and the precise pathways they follow through the vesicle trafficking network. A primary aim of this article is to assess critically the current status of this debate in plant cells. For this purpose, background information on the important characteristics of the FM-dyes, and of optimal dye concentrations, conditions of dye storage, and staining and imaging protocols, are provided. Particular emphasis is placed on using the FM-dyes in double labelling experiments to identity specific organelles. In this way, staining of the Golgi with FM4-64 has been demonstrated for the first time.

Remorins (REMs) are proteins of unknown function specific to vascular plants. We have used imaging and biochemical approaches and in situ labeling to demonstrate that REM clusters at plasmodesmata and in ;70-nm membrane domains, similar to lipid rafts, in the cytosolic leaflet of the plasma membrane. From a manipulation of REM levels in transgenic tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) plants, we show that Potato virus X (PVX) movement is inversely related to REM accumulation. We show that REM can interact physically with the movement protein TRIPLE GENE BLOCK PROTEIN1 from PVX. Based on the localization of REM and its impact on virus macromolecular trafficking, we discuss the potential for lipid rafts to act as functional components in plasmodesmata and the plasma membrane.

Sphingolipids are a class of structural membrane lipids involved in membrane trafficking and cell polarity. Functional analysis of the ceramide synthase family in Arabidopsis thaliana demonstrates the existence of two activities selective for the length of the acyl chains. Very-long-acyl-chain (C > 18 carbons) but not long-chain sphingolipids are essential for plant development. Reduction of very-long-chain fatty acid sphingolipid levels leads in particular to auxin-dependent inhibition of lateral root emergence that is associated with selective aggregation of the plasma membrane auxin carriers AUX1 and PIN1 in the cytosol. Defective targeting of polar auxin carriers is characterized by specific aggregation of Rab-A2 a -and Rab-A1 elabeled early endosomes along the secretory pathway. These aggregates correlate with the accumulation of membrane structures and vesicle fragmentation in the cytosol. In conclusion, sphingolipids with very long acyl chains define a trafficking pathway with specific endomembrane compartments and polar auxin transport protein cargoes.

Brassinosteroids (BRs) are plant steroid hormones that control many aspects of plant growth and development. BRs are perceived at the cell-surface by the plasma membrane-localized receptor complex composed of the receptor kinase BRI1 and its co-receptor BAK1. Here we show that BRI1 is post-translationally modified by K63 polyubiquitin chains in vivo. Artificially ubiquitinated BRI1 is recognized at the trans-Golgi Network/Early Endosomes (TGN/EE) and rapidly routed for vacuolar degradation. Mass spectrometry analyses identified residue K866 as an in vivo ubiquitination target in BRI1 involved in the negative regulation of BRI1. Model prediction revealed several redundant ubiquitination sites required for the endosomal sorting and vacuolar targeting of BRI1. Using total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy (TIRF), we also uncovered a role for BRI1 ubiquitination in promoting internalization from the cell-surface. Finally, we demonstrate that the control of BRI1 protein dynamics by ubiquitination is a fundamental control mechanism for BR responses in plants. Altogether, our results identify K63-linked polyubiquitin chain formation as a dual targeting signal for BRI1 internalization and sorting along the endocytic pathway, and highlight its role in hormonally controlled plant development.